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UNICEF India Response Plan to COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 Pandemic poses new challenges to children’s physical, emotional and psychosocial well-being that require a multi-sectoral approach.

UNICEF/UNI296875/Narain

Highlights

The rapid escalation of COVID-19 cases is expected to have immediate and medium term social and economic consequences, severely impacting vulnerable communities. With this in mind, UNICEF has adopted a multi-sectoral approachto its response strategy, coordinating with relevant Ministries involved in the response, to enable policies that protect the rights of the most vulnerable, especially women and children.

UNICEF India’s Response Plan was finalized in early April 2020 to support the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and other line ministries involved in the pan-government response to COVID-19 in India.

The UNICEF response plan has two major goals:

- Minimizing the spread and impact of the outbreak on the population, with a focus on women and children;

- Ensuring that essential services for women and children are safely made accessible during and after the pandemic.

A trusted partner of the Government of India, with a proven track record in supporting health emergencies, UNICEF, together with WHO and other UN agencies, has activated its entire machinery to support the Government towards two main goals: reducing transmission and mitigating impact of the pandemic on children, young people and their care providers, especially the most vulnerable.

With multi-sectoral teams in 13 field offices - covering over 100 districts across 23 states - the UNICEF team comprises experts in health, nutrition, water and sanitation, education, child protection, inclusive social policy, disaster risk reduction, communication for development, and external communication and advocacy.